Assessments will be March 17th, March 24th and April 7th, and you must sign up for an assessment. You can sign up for a time here. If your children were on the team last year, they do not need to be assessed, returning swimmers are welcome in register here.

So what does my swimmer need to be able to do to make the competitive swim team? During our swim team practices, we do not have coaches in the lane with the swimmers and we practice in the middle of the pool (not the shallow end). Swimmers must be able to swim independently across the pool without holding on to the lane lines and be able to swim laps for a 45-60 minute practice. Your swimmer must be comfortable swimming freestyle and backstroke with some level of proficiency and stroke technique (e.g., breathing, kick, arm and body position), endurance, and swim 25M of each stroke. In addition, your swimmer must be comfortable swimming in deep water where they can’t touch the bottom. We do not have a minimum age requirement because some swimmers are ready for the team at 6 years old but others are not yet ready until they are older. Swimmers need to show maturity, listen to their coaches, and get themselves ready independently on the pool deck.

FAQs

May I watch my swimmer swim at the assessment? You should be able to observe from the upper deck or from the bleacher area.

What should I do to prepare my swimmer for the assessment? If your swimmer has not been in the water since the summer, consider spending as much time as possible swimming between now and the assessment. Young swimmers experience significant drop-off in their ability and comfort level if they have not been swimming over the winter and may now feel shy, scared or nervous about swimming in deep water. You should consider bringing your swimmer to Chinquapin before their assessment date so that she/he is familiar with the pool.

When will I hear whether my swimmer has made the team? The coaches and team reps will evaluate and discuss each swimmer after we complete the assessments. We will notify you by April 8th whether your swimmer is invited to join the team, our Junior Piranha program, or join our Mini-Piranhas swim lesson program. We are paying for the lane rentals and can’t take the expensive hour that we have to confer with the coaches and parents after each swim, so please be patient.

We have limited capacity to add new swimmers to our competitive swim team. Our Junior Piranhas program can take up to approximately 15-20 kids.

I saw kids wearing Piranha gear at the pool last summer. Where can I buy a hoodie and other cool gear for my family?

You can check out our team gear at Sport Fair Team Store. The store closes on April 15th, and orders will be distributed when they arrive. You will receive an email when you can stop by Parklawn Pool to pick up the gear.

If my swimmer makes the competitive swim team, when will practices occur and when are the meets? Our competitive swim team practices Monday through Friday. Before school is out, the team practices in the evening. Our 8Us arrive by 6:15 PM and practice from 6:30 to 7:30 PM. Our swim team morning practices start when Fairfax County school are out, and our 8Us will practice in one of two blocks from 7:00 to 9 AM. Exact session to be determined. No practices are in the evening once we move to morning practice.

All swimmers on the competitive swim team can swim in our Monday night B-meets; coaches determine which strokes/events they are eligible to swim. Coaches select who swims in our NVSL competitive meets (A-Meets) that occur on Saturday morning.

What is the Junior Piranha Developmental Team Program? This program is for swimmers who are not yet ready to practice and swim laps in the lane lines. We wanted to create a program that would allow swimmers to participate and be on the swim team even though they are not 100% ready for a swim team practice. This is not a learn-to-swim program, but a bridge between our lesson program and our competitive swim team. Participants must be able to swim a 25M freestyle and 15M backstroke.

Our Junior Piranhas can participate in pep rallies and all of the usual team activities. They receive a team t-shirt and a trophy at the end of the season.

These swimmers practice in the shallow end. The practice schedule for our Junior Piranhas is different from the competitive swim team. Junior Piranhas will practice for 30 minutes (Monday through Friday) starting at 7:30 PM while school is in session. Once school is out, we do not offer evening practice and the Junior Piranhas will practice sometime between 7:00 and 11 AM. We try to schedule our Junior Piranhas practice at the same time as their older siblings.

 We want our swimmers to be successful and their first meet experience to be a positive one. Our Junior Piranhas would benefit from more practice time before they compete in a meet.

What is the Mini-Piranha Swim Lesson Program? Our swim lesson program has four levels starting with water safety and introduction to the water and ending with learning swimming technique and strokes. You do not need to attend the swim assessment to enroll in our lesson program. The lesson program starts in mid-June and runs through mid-August. More information about our swim lesson program is available at: Swim Lesson Program.

Questions? If you have any questions about swim team, please do not hesitate to reach out to us at [email protected].

Karen and Jason Corbett

Parklawn Piranhas Swim Team Reps

Questions can be directed to: [email protected]